History of Texas, together with a biographical history of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson counties : containing a concise history of the state, with portraits and biographies of prominent citizens of the above named counties, and personal histories of many of the early settlers and leading families
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341

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HISTO1~~~Y OF TEXAS. 341~~~

from Lowndes county, Alabama, to join thestruggling colonies in Texas in the earlyspring of 1836, but reached the LouisianaState line just at the time of the " runaway,"when the families of the settlers were orderedback from the frontier by General Houston,to escape possible massacre by Santa Anna'sarmy. He stopped near Fort Jessup, Louisiana,intending to remain there only until thetermination of hostilities with Mexico, when,if the colonists were successful, he expectedto take up his residence in Texas. He continuedto live at Fort Jessup, however, until1846, when with the general movement tothe southwest of citizens and soldiery he cameto Corpus Christi, sending his family in careof his oldest son, Anderson W., by water andcoming overland with four of his sons.At Corpus Christi, le joined an expeditionon April 25, 1846, which had in charge awagon train loaded with important stores forthe Second United States Dragoons thenstationed at Point Isabel and Fort Brown. Inthis expedition he was accompanied by twoof his sons, Anderson W., his oldest boy, andWilliam L., the third. The party was madeup mostly of men and youth, there being onlytwo women in the number, a Mrs. Atwaterand a Mrs. Lafferty, the former of whom had hertwo small children with her and both of whomwere accompanied by their husbands. Thislittle party, important as its mission was, hadno guard and was but poorly supplied witharms. The reason for this possibly was thattwo or three detachments of the UnitedStates army was between it and the Mexicanlines, and its members felt that there was noespecial cause for vigilance on their part.But in this, as is often the case in " time ofwar," appearances were deceptive. On theevening of May 1, just as the party was goinginto camp at the ford of the Colorado, on

the road from Corpus Christi to Fort Brown,having crossed the Little Colorado river andproceeded about four miles, they were suddenlysurprised by a band of Mexicans, wlhosurrounded them and demanded their surrender.Some of the party were for makinga resistance, but others who were supposedto be wiser in counsel prevailed and the partysurrendered, stipulating that they should betreated as prisoners of war by a civilizednation. The Mexicans, treating this obligationas they are accustomed to treat such obligations,immediately bound the prisonerswith cords by twos and marched them backon the run four miles to the river. Theywere made to wade to the opposite shore, thenmarched up the bank about 400 yards, wherethey were divided into three divisions andmarched one division at a time to the bankof the river out of sight of the others, andmade to kneel. A burly Mexican with alarge knife passed along the line, and, takingeach of the prisoners by the hair, threw thehead back and cut his troat from ear to ear!Others followed hitn, and, cutting the cordsso as to loosen the bodies from each other,cast them into the river. This was done witheach one of the men. The women and twochildren were subsequently murdered, theirlast resting place not being known. Life wasnot extinct in all of the bodies cast into theLittle Colorado, as was supposed, by the Mexicans.An Irishman, whose name is not nowremembered, and the younger of the Rogersboys, William L., were destined after sufferinguntold hardships to escape from that tryingordeal. The Irishman crawled up intoan excavation made by tide-water next to thebank over which he was pitched, and thushidden froIn view remained until the Mexicanswere gone, when lie escaped to the American settlements. Young Rogers swam

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Lewis Publishing Company, publisher.History of Texas, together with a biographical history of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson counties : containing a concise history of the state, with portraits and biographies of prominent citizens of the above named counties, and personal histories of many of the early settlers and leading families,
book,
1893;
Chicago.
(texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth29785/m1/361/:
accessed August 18, 2017),
University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu;
.